Trencher Track Drive
TME was awarded the upgrade of a trencher track drive for more reliability and higher performance during subsea trenching operations.
Boskalis deploys the trencher for subsea cable burial operations. The existing track drive was redesigned and rebuilt by TME for higher performance.
In close collaboration with Boskalis, TME identified some bottlenecks and opportunities for better system performance. A prerequisite for higher performance was boosting the drive torque. Beside new drives, this demand required a redesign of the chain system which adversely affected the required drive power.
Optimizations included new drives, a high strength steel undercarriage, sprockets, track support rollers, a tensioning unit and track chain. The design measures have resulted in increased drive power, eliminating damages to the tracks and minimal internal friction and wear.
The demanding requirements and associated high-risk profile of this project demanded close collaboration with Boskalis, fully-fledged engineering and project management from concept design up to fabrication and commissioning. The upgraded track drive is now deployed with success. A highly reliable system which exceeds performance standards.
